Slow walking after ~25 mins

[Moo]

My 5 year old boy Rumble who I've now had for a week starts off quite energetic, but after 20-30 mins will slow to a crawl, walking behind me as slowly as he can, often stopping entirely but not in the same way as he does when he freezes. I've checked his paws which seem fine, although there is some roughness on the toes, and I've been applying paw balm to be on the safe side. He hasn't long finished racing so probably hasn't walked on hard surfaces much. There's one pad which I thought had a corn on it, as there was a small circle that I could see, but my vet today told me his pads were fine so I don't know what the problem could be (it's possible they aren't familiar with the delicate paws of a grey, though).

 

Is this likely to be caused by sore paws and corns, or is there another reason he's slowing down? I see no signs of joint pain or limping, and as I say, he's quite perky for the first half of the walk, it just gets difficult in the second half. :/ 

[greysmom]

He's probably tired!

A long race for a greyhound takes maybe 45 seconds, and they only race every 3-4 days.  They usually need to be gradually stretched out for longer distance walks, especially after the excitement of a walk being unusual wears off.  In a way, it's a good sign.  It shows he's settling in to his new home life and novel things are becoming familiar.

A good 20 minute walk should be fine for him exercise wise.  I don't remember where you live, but if it's getting colder he probably won't want to be out long in the winter anyway.

[MerseyGrey]

Yes he probably is tired. Although he was walked at the kennels you adopted him from they won’t have taken him out for too long. When we adopted Buddy we took him for a walk from the kennels with a carer and were only out for 20 minutes tops. We walk him for a bit longer now but you will have to build him up slowly. How old is Rumble? Buddy will often slow down in the second half of his walk, but usually when it’s a bit warmer. I don’t think it’s that cold here at the minute - I walked Buddy in a t-shirt and jumper this evening. But that could be my age 😬🥵

And Buddy also has little pink circles on his pads but definitely doesn’t have corns. I’ve never been certain about using paw balm regularly since I don’t really want his pads to be too soft. I want him to be able to walk on the pavement as about half of his walks are like this, rather than on grass or soil. As long as they are not too cracked I don’t worry but I’m not absolutely certain this is the correct approach.

[HeyRunDog]

I agree with both greysmom and MerseyGrey that his stamina needs building up slowly and if it was a corn he would be limping from the start especially on hard surfces. (voice of experience )

I too would suggets not to use paw balm. He needs to build up some hard skin on his feet to protect them from pavements etc.

 

[cleptogrey]

GH are very sensitive to the climate. cool brisk days are walking day- do talk to your adoption group. someone experienced there will be able to check for corns and give you some pointers. hopefully they are responsive and will walk you thru this and any other questions you have. 

corns, soft pads, warm weather all can contribute to this situation. 

[Moo]

4 hours ago, cleptogrey said:

GH are very sensitive to the climate. cool brisk days are walking day- do talk to your adoption group. someone experienced there will be able to check for corns and give you some pointers. hopefully they are responsive and will walk you thru this and any other questions you have. 

corns, soft pads, warm weather all can contribute to this situation. 

It was the rescue who checked him and told me he had no foot issues, just that the pads were soft. I suspect he has the beginnings of a corn, but he doesn't seem too bothered by it yet, but I'm keeping an eye on it. It's fairly cool here in the UK at the moment, but comfortable enough for me to be able to go outside with a jumper on, so I think the temperature is ok for walking here. 

 

Thanks for all the suggestions, I'm going to try aiming for a few shorter walks rather than an hour long one. Will he eventually build up stamina to do long walks? I love going on walks and hikes so I'd be sad to not take my lad with me.  

[greysmom]

Of course!  But like any athletic endeavor, he needs to train and build up his stamina for longer hikes.  He might actually like and be more enthusiastic about "off road" actual hiking (ie out in the country, or on trails, at nature parks, etc) due to the variety of smells and varied terrain.  But his body will still need to become accustomed to doing the work.

Greyhounds specialize in "fast twitch" muscles for ultimate effort in a short amount of time.  That muscle needs to be converted to more endurance level muscle to support long term effort more conservatively.  And if you do a LOT of hiking/walking he may need more food to maintain his body weight and condition.

[Moo]

That's great to know! I'll be moving to an area with lots of nature and beaches this week, so he should get plenty of opportunity to do lots of off roading soon! He only stopped racing this September so it makes sense that his muscles are still adjusting.